scholarly journals CORRECT USE OF COLOR FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE DOCUMENTATION

Author(s):  
A. Molada-Tebar ◽  
Á. Marqués-Mateu ◽  
J. L. Lerma

<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> Accurate color recording is a fundamental feature for proper cultural heritage documentation, cataloging and preservation. However, the methodology used in most cases limits the results since it is based either on perceptual procedures or on the application of digital enhancement techniques only. The objective of this study is to apply a rigorous procedure for the characterization of cameras based on a second-order polynomial model. Trichromatic digital cameras capture color information in the well-known RGB format. Nevertheless, the signal generated by the digital camera is device dependent. By means of the characterization, we establish the relationship between device-dependent RGB values and the tristimulus coordinates defined by the CIE standard colorimetric observer. Once the camera is characterized, users obtain output images in the sRGB space that is independent of the sensor of the camera. We applied the methodology on a set of pictures targeting Levantine rock art motifs in Cova Civil (Castellón, Spain) which is considered part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We used raw image files, with different exposure conditions, with raw RGB values captured by the sensor. The outcomes obtained are satisfactory and very promising for proper color documentation in cultural heritage documentation.</p>

Author(s):  
Adolfo Molada Tebar ◽  
José Luis Lerma ◽  
Ángel Marqués-Mateu

Archaeological documentation is a complex process where the technical measurement and specification of colour is a key aspect. In the last years heritage documentation processes have largely benefited from the application of digital recording methods, imagery analysis software and technologies that offers great advantages over the traditional methods. The rigorous processing of colourimetric data requires software packages with specific colourimetric technical characteristics. In this paper we report on our in-house pyColourimetry software that was developed and tested taking into account the recommendations of the Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage (CIE). The objective is to apply a rigorous procedure for the characterisation of cameras based a priori on polynomial models. Most of the digital cameras capture colour information in the well-known RGB format, but the signals generated by the digital camera are device dependent. By means of the characterisation we establish the relationship between device dependent RGB values and the tristimulus coordinates defined by the CIE standard colourimetric observer. Once the camera is characterised, users have the potential to obtain output images in the sRGB space that is independent of the sensor of the camera. pyColourimetry software allows users to control the entire digital image processing and the colourimetric data workflow proposed. We applied the methodology on a set of pictures targeting Levantine rock art motifs in Cova dels Cavalls (Castellón, Spain) which is considered part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The outcomes obtained are satisfactory and very promising for proper colour documentation in cultural heritage estudies.http://dx.doi.org/10.4995/CIGeo2017.2017.6568


2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-68
Author(s):  
Sarmite Barvika ◽  
Sandra Treija ◽  
Egons Berzins

Historical buildings are the most visible part of cultural heritage. They make up Latvia’s historical landscape that has been centuries in the making. In the vast majority of cases these buildings are included in the historical cultural heritage of Latvia. However, the practical mechanisms of their preservation (ownership preservation, maintenance, renewal opportunities) and, consequently, their economic potential, still have not yet been fully evaluated. Does cultural value interact with market value? What factors affect urban planning in the Historic Centre of Riga and its PZ – a UNESCO World Heritage site? Answers to these questions, as well as the main challenges in the preservation of values of Riga’s architectural heritage will be discussed in the paper. Istoriniai pastatai – matomiausia kultūrinio paveldo dalis. Jie išryškina šimtmečiais kurtą Latvijos istorinį kraštovaizdį. Dauguma tokių pastatų įrašyta į Latvijos istorinio kultūros paveldo sąrašus. Vis tik praktiniai jų apsaugos mechanizmai (nuosavybės apsauga, priežiūra, atnaujinimo galimybės), o kartu ir ekonominis potencialas dar nėra visapusiškai įvertinta. Ar yra kultūrinės vertės ir rinkos vertės tarpusavio sąveika? Kokie veiksniai turi įtakos Rygos istorinio centro urbanistiniam planavimui – ar tai, pavyzdžiui, buvimas UNESCO pasaulio paveldo sąraše? Bandoma atsakyti į šiuos klausimus, aptariami Rygos architektūrinio paveldo vertybių apsaugos srityje kylantys iššūkiai.


Author(s):  
Gabriel Yit Vui Yong

Kampong Ayer is the cultural hearth of Brunei Darussalam. Once described as the Venice of the East, modernization has transformed this capital of the Brunei Sultanate into just another urban settlement, but located within the Sungai Brunei estuary. Its largely modern architecture and built environment has raised the question of whether it still holds any heritage value. This paper aims to provide an answer using the UNESCO World Heritage Site enlistment criteria as a guide. The study focusses on the relationship between people and environment (Criteria 5) to determine if they could be regarded as an outstanding example that is vulnerable to irreversible change. It employs a biomimetic approach to analysis as field surveys suggest the environment to be a prominent factor. The information used was gathered over the past decade through field work and dialogue with current and former residents. The study found a good degree of congruence between residents of Kampong Ayer and mangroves, the ‘genius of place’ in the Sg Brunei estuary. It also found processes and patterns typical of organismic, evolving systems. The study elucidated cultural traits that have survived through the evolution of Kampong Ayer over half a millennium. The paper also addresses sustainability issues using findings from biomimetic analysis.


2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 235-240
Author(s):  
Piotr Gleń

The article deals with cultural values that represents the wooden church architecture. Author focuses on the examples of the church in the Polish and Ukrainian region of Carpathian mountains. The abundance of wood as a building material in the region, as well as the landform and the localization, resulted that the local architecture Orthodox Church has become a unique and highly characteristic. The author of the article, presents the wooden churches in the Poland and Ukraine inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site which took place on 21 June 2013, at the 37 session. On that list is currently 16 Orthodox churches of the Carpathian region: 8 temples on the Polish side and 8 from the Ukrainian side. The churches of the Carpathian region inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage are a testament to the interpenetration of Christian culture characteristic of the East and the West showing the relationship between the Polish and Ukrainian community.


Author(s):  
Zainab Gharib

The Wadi Rum Protected Area (WRPA) in Jordan, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is an iconic desert landscape and significant for both its natural and cultural heritage. The most notable form of cultural heritage in the Wadi are the thousands of petroglyphs on the local Umm Ishrin sandstone. Tourist activity, however, poses a threat and potentially accelerates the decay of this resource beyond natural rock decay rates. Therefore, in an effort to better manage this cultural resource, a large sample of these rock-art panels have been examined by an international team funded under the USAID/SCHEP program, and scored based on the degree of decay they have undergone using the Rock Art Stability Index (RASI). RASI has five general categories that rate geological stability, rock decay processes - past, present and impending - and rock-coatings; the variables within each category are scored on a scale of zero to three, corresponding to “Not Present”, “Present”, “Obvious,” and “Dominant”. This method of scoring is suitable for use by experts and non-experts alike, and data collection can be conveniently accomplished using ESRI’s Survey123, a form-centric and field-friendly mobile application. Through the use of a Geographic Information System (GIS) such as ArcGIS Online, these data can then easily be organized, analyzed, represented, and shared. In an effort to better direct attention to those panels that need the most immediate care, and to validate the RASI methodology, my research focuses on using statistical analyses of correlation to highlight any relationships between processes of decay.


2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (06) ◽  
pp. 1892-1923
Author(s):  
JULIA SOPHIE DOBSON

AbstractIn April 2014, the Cellular Jail, Andaman Islands, was submitted to the UNESCO World Heritage Site Tentative List for India. The image of the colonial jail, depicted on coins, stamps, and first day covers, symbolizes both the suffering and heroic struggle of India's freedom fighters. Considering how international, national, and local state forces have attempted to ‘freeze’ the meaning of the Cellular Jail, this article questions what has been excluded or obscured from collective memory. Furthermore, it explores the relationship between contending political wills and the symbol of the Cellular Jail through a particular focus on recent struggles between Hindu and secular nationalists over its appropriation. By considering the production of the symbol of the Cellular Jail, this article challenges the narratives at the heart of modern nation-building and demonstrates their intrinsic instability.


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